Fly me to Neverland
by hogwartswonderland
Summary: Every night before she went to sleep, little Eryn Maddox would be whisked away for a night of adventures by none other than Peter Pan himself. It has been a long while since then and Eryn has matured. But she is succumbing to pressure of adulthood. Luckily, Peter has been keeping an eye on her and has decided to fulfill his promise to her- to be the first ever lost girl.
1. Preface

Take me to Neverland

By Hogwartswonderland

Preface

The last time they were together he promised her that he would come back for her, no matter the cost. It was unusual for him to become emotionally attached to anyone- or anything, for that matter- but she managed to break the barrier that encased his heart. She may have been only a girl at the time but there was something special that drew him to her the moment she was dropped on the island.

While she may have not had the heart of the true believer, she had the heart and soul of someone with a sense of adventure and imagination. She had an imagination so powerful that he could feel a tiny spark of magic ignite upon the desolate island which he called his home. So when it was time to let her go home- for good- he couldn't help but promise her to bring her back. Only that time he would never return her. She would remain by his side forever, never ageing as they went upon their crusade to save magic.

Felix thought he was only saying that to get her to leave without trouble, but he should remember that Peter Pan always keeps his promises. Especially when it comes to Eryn Maddox- the girl with the power of imagination.


	2. Shadows in the Night

Fly me to Neverland

_Shadows in the Night_

Eryn ran swiftly through the dense foliage; her thick, sunset red hair flying and snagging itself on the lower branches. The sound of thunderous footsteps could be heard not far behind. In fact, they were a little too close for comfort. Eryn frantically scanned her surroundings for a hiding spot. She spotted a rather large tree only a few feet away and quickly proceeded to (unsuccessfully) climb up. On her third attempt, she felt something- or someone- grab her by the wrists and pull her up.

"I found you, Eryn," was all she heard before she blacked out.

Eryn sat up quickly, her heart racing from the bizarre dream she just had. Attempting to calm herself, Eryn closed her eyes, took a few deep breaths, and then evaluated her surroundings. Obviously, she was still in her room in London. After all, she could see no trees besides those that were beyond her window. But she could not even see those as her window was mostly blocked with a thick lace curtain, which only let a little sliver of the full moon peek through. That little bit of light shined on a small portion of the room, revealing a modest wardrobe next to the door and a simple oak desk with vase of daisies on it pushed against the adjacent wall. A soft royal blue rug that matched her bedspread covered the dark stained wooden floor. All-in-all, nothing was out of place. Still, Eryn could not shake the feeling that something was amiss. Dismissing it a paranoia from her dream, Eryn snuggled under the covers and fell back into a dreamless slumber. She failed to notice a pair of purple glowing eyes watching her from above.

When Eryn woke up the next morning she had no recollection of the dream, but still had a sense of paranoia. She decided to ignore it the best she could and focus on her morning tasks. After all, she had no room for childish nonsense to distract her from the day ahead. Ignoring it worked for the better part of the morning. It wasn't until after Eryn dropped her sister, Emily, off to the Darling household and she walked into school that she felt the paranoia creep up on her again. This time it was stronger than before. It was mostly due to the increased whispers and stares from her classmates.

Although the whispers and stares were not an uncommon occurrence in Eryn's day at school, it still managed to unsettle her.

'_This is worse than when word got out that my father left Mother, Emily, and I,"_ Eryn observed. _'I do hope that whatever it is they are gossiping about now will go away by tea time.'_

But the stares and whispers did not stop. Rather, they seemed to increase to a point where even the governesses began to talk as well. And poor Eryn was still in the dark as far as what all the commotion was about. Well, that was until Harriet Bowman, the schools notorious gossip, came right up and talked to her.

"Is it true then Jane?" Harriet asked in a rude manner, completely ignoring the proper etiquette of starting a conversation with a polite greeting.

"Hello to you as well, Harriet. Now, first of all, I preferred to be called Eryn, not Jane. You of all people should know that I don't liked to be called by my first name. Secondly, what are you talking about?" Eryn huffed in annoyance.

For a moment Harriet was silent as she was too shocked to speak. This was a rarity for the girl that often received demerits for her excessive talking. "How could you, of all people, not know about your own engagement?"

This time it was Eryn that was shocked. This is the first she has heard about an engagement. "I don't know myself," Eryn confided to the gossiper. "The last I checked, no one wanted to marry a girl whose father ran out on her family. Who are people saying that I am betrothed to?"

"If you must know, I overheard from my mother, who heard from Mrs. Wallace, who was told by her husband, who overheard from the dashing Mr. Jones, who was talking to the tailor down the street, who heard directly from your mother-"

"Harriet! Will you just please give me a name?"

Harriet rolled her eyes. She did not like to be disrupted. "Alright, then. Don't get your knickers in a knot. Apparently you are to marry the devishly handsome Mr. William Barton!"

This time it was Eryn who was shocked. William Barton is very well known as the most eligible bachelor in Bloomsbury. He has a strong jaw, carefully combed light blonde hair, and eyes the shade of emeralds. Even Eryn admits that he is handsome. Besides being handsome, he also comes from a wealthy family- which some find more attractive than his looks. Williams's father owns the fifth largest bank in London and plans to hand his title of President to his son. But all the wealth and beauty could not make up for his nasty personality. At least, that is what Eryn thinks. Nobody else seems to share her opinion. Only she can see that William Barton is a nasty individual that cares only for money, girls, and expensive wine.

"Are you not excited, Jane? I- or any girl- would trade places with you in a heartbeat!"

Eryn did not answer. She was too shocked- too angry- to even think about replying. All she needed was to see her mother and demand that she retract whatever agreement she had with the Barton's.

"Jane? Are you alright, dear?" a nearby teacher asked kindly. "You look quite pale for a bride-to-be!"

Upon hearing the words 'bride-to-be' Eryn snapped. "If you don't mind Miss. Smyth, could I be excused to go home? I am afraid this is the first I heard of my engagement and I believe it is only appropriate that I go home and prepare to meet my future husband," Eryn requested in a sickly sweet (and very fake) voice.

Completely believing the lie, Miss. Smyth allowed her to return home early. Not wasting another second, Eryn sprinted all the way home, ignoring the disapproving looks of those she passed by in the hallways and on the street. By the time she arrived home, her collared white lace shirt and long, dark blue skirt were rumpled and her long hair was coming out of its plait.

Eryn calls out for her mother immediately as she walks inside. Her mother appears from the study- which no one has been in since her father left four years ago. Eryn notes that her mother's light blonde hair, which is usually in a neat bun, is now loose and in her face and that her normal perfectly ironed black and white stripped dress and black petticoat is covered with wrinkles and ink stains. Her rouge is ruined with what looks like tear tracks sliding down her cheeks. Even her light grey eyes, which Eryn inherited, are obviously bloodshot from crying. Despite her mother's distraught appearance Eryn can't bring herself to calm down. She had explicitly expressed to her mother that she does not wish to be married. She would much rather become a governess and support her mother and sister.

"How could you mother? I already conveyed that I have no wish to marry. But you still go ahead and arrange a marriage for me. And with the worst possible person there is! You know how much I detest William Barton and everything he stands for!"

"Sweetheart, I am just doing what is best for you. William can give you a stable life. You will not have to worry ever again."

"You call marrying a man who I will never love and will never love me, stable? William Barton only cares about himself and his father's money!"

"Jane Eryn Maddox! How dare you say that! I know that I have raised you to be a more polite young lady then that. I set this up for your own good. You may not love him not but I know you will learn to." Her mother smiles fondly remembering a past memory. "Your father and I did not love one another at first. It wasn't until after a year of marriage did we realize that we loved each other."

"I can see that it worked so well in the end, Mother. In case you haven't noticed, the man that you call your husband is no longer here! He left us. Abandoned us. He never cared as much as you did. He was never worthy of you. I don't want-"

"Your father was a good man," Mary Maddox interrupted her daughter. "He may not have showed it in the best way but he loves us. I don't want you ever talking about him like that again. And your father had nothing to do with your marriage, so don't even try to go down that road."

"He has everything to do with this! Mr. Barton may not leave me like he did, but he will never be a part of the union to begin with! In a way, it is even worse than-"

Suddenly the front opened, disrupting the fight between mother and daughter. In the doorway stood a confused yet excited Emily, who obviously knew about the news of her sister's betrothal. Emily, who was only twelve, left her good friend Wendy Darling's house early to congratulate her elder sister. Not noticing- or perhaps ignoring- her mother's weary appearance and her sister's unsmiling face, Emily skipped into the house and gave her sister a large hug.

"I am elated for you marriage, big sister! Please tell me that I am to be a part of your wedding party? I can do your hair, sew your dress, and prepare your bouquet-"

"Emily!" Eryn shouted at her naïve sister. "I am not getting married. So please, do not talk about it again."

"But, but" Emily trembled, tears beginning to form in the corner of her eyes. "I heard that you were to marry Mr. William Barton. He is a nice man. I would love to have him as my big brother!"

"You don't get it, Emily," huffed Eryn. "Everybody loves you! It is me that they have a problem with. And it is I that has a problem with the dreadful Mr. Barton! So please, for my sake, don't bring it up again!"

Emily promptly burst into tears at her big sisters harsh words. Mary put a comforting arm around her youngest daughter's shoulders and led her into the parlor. Before she left the entry way where Eryn still stood, she turned around and looked her dead in the eye and said, "Go to your room. You will not speak to your sister in such a rude manor. Only when you control your temper can you come back out."

Fuming, Eryn rushed up the staircase to her room, slammed the door shut and flopped ungracefully onto her bed. She begins crying, which is very out of character for her. After crying for a good bit, Eryn changes into a pale yellow nightgown with a pink ribbon tied at the waist and promptly falls asleep.

A couple hours later, Eryn wakes up to the sound of tapping on her window. Curious, she slips on her brown leather flats and walks over to the window to investigate. Opening the window, she sees nothing. Double checking to make sure nothing is there, she closes the window, locks it, the turns around to leave. But Eryn doesn't even make it two steps before coming face to face with a boy with a wicked grin and twinkling blue eyes.

"Who are you and how did you get into my room?" Eryn demands the mysterious boy.

The boy just grins and begins circling her like a lion circling its prey. "Now Eryn, don't you remember me? We used to have so much fun together. You, the lost boys and I used to play hide-and-go-seek! It used to be your favorite game," the boy sighs wistfully. "Now look at you. You are all grown up with no time for 'childish nonsense."

A memory of running with a bunch of young boys in a damp forest flitted across Eryn's mind. She suddenly remembered the dream from the night before and matches the bodiless voice from before to the one of the boy in front of her.

"You haven't answered my questions. Who are you and what do you want?"

He chuckled and gave her a smirk that makes her heart want to jump out of her chest. "Now that hurts my feeling. I would have thought you would at least remember our promise. It seems like now would be the best time for you to remember. How you forgot when it was only a short time ago, puzzles me. But I can forgive you, my lost girl."

It is at that moment that Eryn remembered everything. She recollects flying away with the shadow every night, arriving in Neverland, playing with the Lost Boys, and most importantly, all the times she spent with him exploring the island."

"Peter Pan," Eryn said breathlessly before she tackled him to the ground in a hug.

"Who else would I be? Felix certainly cannot come to the mainland to collect you."

She rolled her eyes then punched him in the shoulder. "I am sorry that I forgot everything. I guess I blocked all memories I have of my father, including you. After all, he is the one that told all of the stories about you and your adventures with the Lost Boys."

"You are forgiven. Now, are you going to hold up your end of the promise?"

Eryn thought about her mother and sister and how devastated they would be to find her missing. But then she remembers her impending marriage to Mr. Barton. She knows the right thing to do is stay behind but she feels as if she should go, as it is her destiny to go with Peter.

"I will go with you. Just let me write a letter to my mother and sister then we can leave."

Peter nodded, detangled himself from her, and went to wait by the window where his shadow could be seen lurking around the ledge.

Eryn rushed to her desk (for the last time) and hurriedly scrawls a brief letter to her family.

_Dear Mother and Emily,_

_I am deeply sorry for my harsh words earlier and please understand that they are not the reason I am writing to you now. I know that you think that this marriage is the reason why I am leaving, but it is not. I made a promise to a friend a long time ago to go with him when the time came. And it is time. Please forgive me. I love you both very much. _

_With love,_

_Jane 'Eryn' Maddox_

Eryn placed the letter on her pillow then flies away with Peter into the night, leaving behind all the grown-up nonsense.


End file.
